On August 27, Qingci Games (06633) released its 2026 interim results, reporting revenue of RMB 170 million for the period. The company demonstrated a significant leap in profitability, with net profit attributable to shareholders climbing to RMB 316 million, a substantial year-on-year increase of 335.07%, showcasing robust operational resilience. This performance is not only a direct reflection of the company's refined operations and strategic foresight but also marks its value reconstruction during a period of industry transformation. Through this financial report, we can observe not only the company's financial resilience amidst cyclical fluctuations but also clearly discern the underlying logic that enables it to navigate through industry cycles. This analysis will delve into three dimensions 鈥?the financial fundamentals, the operation of existing assets versus new growth drivers, and the future technology and product pipeline 鈥?to deeply examine how Qingci Games is solidifying its foundation against headwinds and initiating its next chapter of high-quality growth.

Surge in profitability highlights operational tenacity, strategic foresight fortifies development base

The surge in profitability first benefits from the company's prudent asset management and financial safety cushion. The financial report indicates that the substantial profit growth partly stems from a significant increase in fair value gains from short-term investments. Amidst heightened macroeconomic cyclical volatility, ample cash flow and a substantial safety margin provide a solid underlying foundation for the company's long-term strategic execution. More critically, this profit growth is the inevitable result of the company's proactive strategic adjustments and forward-looking preparations. As the industry enters a phase of intensified competition for existing market share and structural differentiation, diminishing returns on user acquisition and rising customer acquisition costs have become common pain points across the sector. Facing the objective reality of its main products naturally entering a mature stage, Qingci Games has avoided short-sighted actions that might compromise the future. Instead, it has demonstrated strong strategic resolve, proactively channeling resources towards key reserve projects with greater global competitiveness. The financial report clearly states that the company is in a phase of concentrated preparation for large-scale strategic reserve projects, with R&D expenditures increasing year-on-year. This boldness to increase R&D investment during a period often described as "between two growth curves" is the best testament to its operational resilience. Through optimizing internal governance, precise market spending, and significantly reducing inefficient marketing expenses, Qingci Games has successfully achieved cost reduction and efficiency improvement. While stabilizing its core business, the company is diligently polishing its next wave of hit products to high standards, laying a solid foundation for the next product cycle's surge.

From a capital market valuation perspective, a gaming company's core value often lies not in short-term revenue fluctuations but in its ability to consistently produce high-quality content with long-term lifecycles. Qingci Games' current financial performance essentially represents a strategic trade-off, accepting near-term revenue adjustments in exchange for long-term growth potential. As its R&D pipeline gradually matures and AI efficiency gains are realized, the company is well-positioned to see both valuation and performance recover in the next product cycle.

Long-term cultivation activates existing asset value, global expansion broadens growth landscape

As traffic dividend growth peaks and the industry deepens its focus on market share competition, Qingci Games has successfully built a highly resilient business landscape through a dual-engine strategy of "deep cultivation of existing assets" and "global market expansion." This transition from "traffic-driven" to "value-driven" growth is the core secret to its ability to navigate industry cycles. On one hand, long-term refined operations are continuously unlocking the deeper value of its existing user base. Its flagship self-developed title, "The Strongest Snail," celebrated its sixth anniversary, successfully revitalizing its user ecosystem by introducing a new character "Yaya," adding an "Amusement Park Management" gameplay mode, and launching a new country "Ross." Financial data shows that while average monthly active users (MAU) and average monthly paying users (MPU) have declined due to the product's natural lifecycle, the willingness to pay and spending depth of core users have significantly improved. During the six-year anniversary event, the spending depth of core existing users saw significant enhancement, with ARPU and ARPPU during the event achieving double-digit growth compared to the same period last year. Overall monthly ARPPU climbed to RMB 314, an 8% increase year-on-year. This financial characteristic of "high ARPPU" fully demonstrates Qingci Games' profound expertise in managing the long lifecycle of mature products, successfully converting its vast registered user pool into a steady stream of stable cash flow.

From a financial modeling perspective, this trend of "declining total users but increasing spending depth" signifies a substantial improvement in the company's earnings quality. In the current environment of high user acquisition costs, relying heavily on acquiring new users to sustain revenue is no longer a viable model. By shifting focus towards high-net-worth core users through precise content iterations and community operations, Qingci Games has effectively increased the lifetime value of individual users. This endogenous growth driver not only significantly reduces dependence on external traffic but also builds a deep moat and a stable profit base for the company. On the other hand, globalization has become the core engine for broadening Qingci Games' growth boundaries. During the reporting period, overseas revenue accounted for as high as 43.29% of total revenue, underscoring the increasingly vital role of international markets. In June 2026, "Cardcaptor Sakura: Memory Keys" was officially released in Japan, quickly topping the local iOS free games chart. Following successful launches in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Vietnam, the success in the Japanese market not only validates the global appeal of this IP but also marks a substantial step forward in Qingci Games' overseas localization publishing and long-term operation capabilities.

In summary, looking at the deeper evolution of its business model, Qingci Games' current operational strategy signifies a complete departure from the traditional gaming model of relying on "user acquisition and churn." It has successfully pivoted towards a refined operational path focused on "maximizing user lifetime value." Against the macroeconomic backdrop of continuously rising customer acquisition costs, allocating resources towards increasing the ARPPU of existing users represents the optimal solution for improving its unit economics. The financial report's data divergence, with user scale declining but per-user value increasing, is strong evidence that this high-value business model is working. Furthermore, the impressive 43.29% share of overseas revenue holds significant valuation premium implications in the capital market. It not only means the company has successfully crossed the policy and regulatory risks associated with relying on a single market but also signifies that its R&D and publishing systems are globally replicable. The success in the Japanese market, in particular, proves that Qingci Games possesses strong localization publishing and long-term monetization capabilities even in the most culturally challenging and competitive mature markets. This dual-engine structure of "high stickiness in existing markets + high global revenue share" significantly enhances the certainty of the company's future cash flows, laying a solid groundwork for achieving a higher valuation multiple in the next product cycle.

AI empowerment reshapes R&D and operations efficiency, pipeline build-up heralds new growth chapter

If long-term cultivation and global expansion are the cornerstones of Qingci Games' current stability, then the deep application of AI technology and the build-up of a diversified product pipeline are the core engines for its future. Amidst the wave of technological change, Qingci Games is comprehensively advancing its AI system upgrades, deeply embedding them throughout the entire lifecycle of product development, publishing decisions, and operational management. From content production and data analysis to version management and market insights, the comprehensive empowerment of AI technology is reshaping the company's R&D and operational efficiency. This not only significantly improves content production efficiency but also provides robust data support for more refined game version management and optimized publishing and operational decisions, enabling the company to respond more agilely and accurately to the rapidly changing market. Moreover, the deep application of AI technology is fundamentally optimizing the company's cost structure. By enhancing human efficiency and R&D productivity, it reserves greater elasticity for future profit release.

In terms of its product pipeline, Qingci Games is entering a new phase of strategic preparation. Besides concentrating resources on polishing its strategically important self-developed SLG game "Project E" and actively advancing domestic version license applications and preparations for multi-platform Steam releases, the company is also actively seeking licensing opportunities for high-quality external products to enrich its PC gaming ecosystem. Qingci Games is reshaping its profit model through "technology-driven efficiency" and a "diversified product matrix." The deep application of AI not only enhances operational efficiency but also subtly reduces the marginal costs of development and publishing, building a long-term competitive advantage. At the same time, a diversified product pipeline effectively diversifies the risks associated with the lifecycle volatility of any single product, strengthening earnings certainty and risk resistance.

From the operational resilience highlighted by the surge in profitability, to the dual-engine drive of long-term cultivation and global expansion, and further to the strategic preparation involving AI empowerment and a diversified product pipeline, Qingci Games' 2026 interim results convey more than just an impressive financial scorecard. They reflect the clarity and foresight of a mature company navigating an industry transition. At this critical crossroads, transitioning comprehensively from "scale expansion" to "high-quality development," Qingci Games is employing strategic resolve to traverse the cycle, solidifying its foundation through value reconstruction, and embarking on a new path via technological innovation. As its strategically reserved projects come to fruition and the benefits of AI efficiency gains continue to unfold, there is every reason to believe that Qingci Games will stride towards a new journey of high-quality growth with even greater momentum in the next industry cycle.